Gas generator



July 24, 1934. G. M DEMING 1,967,294

GAS GENERATOR Filed March 22. 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet l ATTORNEY July 24, 1934-` G. M. DEMING v 'GAS GENERATOR Filed March 22, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR @E El il n@ mm.

ATTORNE G. M. DEMING GAS GENERATOR July 24, 1934.

Filed March 22, 1932 3 Sheets-Sheet `C',

O ln

INVENTOR' ATTORNEY Patented July 24, 1934 :UNI'liao fsirAirEis PAT-ENT :.oFFilcE "6 Claims. (Cl.` 48-38) This invention relatestto gas generators in ,fwhichwsolidwY material: is' fed-and `dropped into a body'fof liquid,-rbyreactionwwith.which gas is generated` :1 Speciiically, the invention relates to 5 acetylene4 generators.

- `The' invention-trelates:more` particularly to a "generatorinwhichta `valve or `feed device at the outlet ofithejcarbide hopper is agitated automatically. tdproducerthe feed. i Objects of thetinvenl0 :tion :are:4 easeuandr'economy; of manufacture, de-

pendability'of i' operation, Vuniformity of pressure ffcfftheigassupplied to torches or` other consuming ..devices,"'high i'quality `of regulation throughout a twide :rangefot-gas-flows fromvery low to very lohigh, (simplicity `offfmechanism 'coupled with m.capability :OFremainingin good working order findeiinitely, `,and Vsturdiness to 4vv-itlnstand use f in the field of rough handling. Y i i `Thergenerator illustrat'edfherein is similar in `120 much'zfofritsrmechanismftofthat disclosed in my .copending application-Serial No. v 600,431 but the .matterszclaimed:herein are-not'lixnited to the -specific mechanism.

'A particularobject` of thepresent invention l25 i to provide anacetylene generatorfhaving `an agitator, `:of inexpensivefconstructiongfwhich lagitator is Mpowerful in its action onfthe carbide feedF de- .lvice and :does'not require `liquidffor :its operation. T'I'he agitatorihas aflexible diaphragm: subject'vto differentialsin gaswpressure; and'atvalve-forA closingLan i orifice through which f gas is 1 discharged at intervals from an chamber at the generator side of itherdiaphragm toV achamber at the outleteside. *.Thisiv'alve:isheldieither opened or closedfandis lactuatedfor` controlledibyxspring mechanism or V1its equivalent sofas to: create anintermittent discharge, saidc'mechanism fbeing u brought into play i? by Lthe :imovement of :the 1 diaphragm. -The re- 5@sulting vigorousxdiaphragm action is transmitted 140 through suitable* linkagev to' the'ieed device.

Qtherobje'cts and features of `theinventionvvill becomefapparent from -the drawings and'.` from 1 'l the "bodybffthe specification. lnsaiddrawings:

` 0 maiis-aviewxjparuymeievationand prin- 'oscillated labout i a vertical i axis.

`Vvalve plate slopesgently from the center, and `in its under Aside there isa-cavity to` receive thego pointed head -14 of i a'valvestem 1.2,- the shank of the carbide feed passage.

-Fig. 4is a horizontal section taken on the `line 4 4: 0f Fig. 2.

A portion of the tank body of the generator,

containing the generating chamber, isrmarked 2,

and a portion of the carbide hopper is markedS. so The normal Waterlevel in the body is marked `It,

Vabove this being the gas spaceA 5.

The hopper has a sloping bottom. 9- containing a broad feed opening 10,- preferably dened `by a lip or spout. The feed of carbide and its delivery V(35 torthe body of` water is` controlled Vbyal valve, ywhich term is to be understoodin abroad sense, andr asuitable part of the valve isaglitatedto cause the carbide to be fed` in accordancewith i the consumption of gas taken from the generator. y

The part which is agitated may be ofwthewkind shown in the accompanying drawings or of differentt kind, see, for example, my copending-ap plication Serial No. 600,434. i

:In the illustrated embodiment,a valve plate 11 75 `is supported beneath-thehopper spout so as to sustainwthe carbide, andfis capable of being The top offthe this stem being guided inthe hub 13 of a spider,

which issupported by a collar 16 projecting downward from the hopper.

gas limb 22 is carriedby the upper part of 85 :the generator body, fromlwhich it extends laterally, the interior of the limb being in communicationwith the gas space of the generator.

,14A-lever 40 extendslwithin this li-mb and into the `generator body, Where-itsterminal4 41 underlies V90 the valvestem 12, for the purpose of raisingand lowering'the valve/plate 11 to vary the sizeof This lever is fulcrumed at its outer end, at 45, andisfacted upon by twoopposing springs 2 8 and 47, the-former '95 tending to lower the feed valve plate `and the vlatter tending to raise it. The spring 28, which may be termed aregulating spring, is the more powerful, and" actsupon theleverAO through Va diaphragm \26,-whichcloses an opening in they Atop of the gas limb.i Whentheggas pressure'in close 'it entirely. Conversely, -when the i gaspressure .decreases somewhat, the spring 28 i exerts merel stressen the lever, :andlinso doingflowers in@ the valve plate. These provisions tend to maintain a uniform working pressure in the generator, which pressure can be varied by the adjusting screw 30.

The carbide feed can be locked by turning the handle 56 of a cam 54 which coacts with cam surfaces on top of the regulator spring bonnet. As fully described in my copending application Serial No. 600,431, this causes the cam to act on the heads 53 of rods 52, the lower ends of which are connected to a cross-bar 44 that passes through a slotted opening in the boss 51 of a diaphragm plate 29. This back-checking of the regulator spring permits the` compensating spring 47 to press and hold thevalve plate A,11 against the edge of the carbide opening 10. Y

Another bonnet 32 contains a relief valve.

An agitator mechanism casing is applied to the under side of the gas limb 22. take pipe 66 connects this chamber with the usual flash-arrester chamber 126, from which the gas passes to the service line or main. A exible diaphragm 127 is clamped at its margin between the-limb 22 and the casing 125, so `that yoneside is exposed to the generator pressure,

on a plate 133 fixed in the upper part of the casing 125. A spring 134 presses the valve against the lip of the nozzle. The valve arm 131 has `a tail 135 to coact with a detent 136, which is pivoted at 137 on the vplate 133. Whenfthe valve is closed, the nose 138 of the detent rests against the tip of the tail of the valve arm. When the valve is open, this tail is caught by `the shoulder of the nose 138, with the result that the valve is held open for a brief time against the stress of the -valve-spring 134. The detent has an arm 139 which is suiciently weighted to cause the detent to act automatically to engage and detain the valve arm. l

A stem 140 extends through the center of the diaphragm, and is aflixed to it in a gas-tight manner by a collar 141 and al nut 142. The upper portion of this stem is bifurcated and has a cross-pin 143 taking over the horizontal arm of a bell-crank lever 70L This lever is pivotally ful- 'crumed at 71 on the regulating lever 40, or it 'ing 125. The Vnut- 142 moves the lever 144 in onedirection and a cross-pin 146 on the stem Ymoves it in the vother direction, the? distance between the nut and pin being greater than the thickness of kthe end of the lever upon` which they act. A spring 147 is stretched between a pin 148 0ntlie other Vend of the lever 144 and va pin 149 Xed to the side of the casing 125. The relations are such that when the lever is moved past a dead center in either direction as the result of movement of the diaphragm, the spring 147 throws the lever. Thus, when the diaphragm 127 is depressed suciently by the generated gas pressure in the chambery of` the gas limb 22, the

A gas 01T:-

contact 142 moves the right-hand arm of the lever 144 down and the left-hand end up until the direction of stress of the spring 147 comes in line with the center and then passes slightly above it. The condition at this instant is the one illustrated in Fig. 2. Thereupon, the spring 147 throws the lever smartly kto the position of Fig. 3. Conversely, when the diaphragm 127 vflexes upward under the action of spring 72, the

cross-pin 146 on the diaphragm stern lifts the right-hand end of the lever and lowers the lefthand end, until the direction of stress of the spring 147 is brought just below the center 145. whereupon the spring drives the lever abruptly to a position in which its right-hand is above and its left-hand below the positions shown in Fig. 2.

The provisions including the lever 144, which is carried alternately in opposite directions to and. past a'center by the contacts on the diaphragm stem 140, and is then urged onward by the spring 147, may be termed a reversible throw-over device. This device and other details of the mechanism may, naturally,`take various forms. For convenience, the directions of movement of the lever 144 of the illustrated embodiment may be referred to as clockwise and counter-clockwise, respectively. In counter-clockwise movement under the action of the spring 147 or its equivalent, the right-hand arm of the lever strikes the arm 139 of thedetent or latch 136, moving the latter so that its nose 138 is withdrawn from detaining engagement with the tail 135 of the valve arm 131, and

this enables the spring 134 to close the valve 130. The abrupt clockwise movement of the lever causes its left-hand arm to strike the'tail of the 1' vlimb 22 may rise to some extent. 'Ihe differential of gas pressures across the diaphragm 127, therefore, increases until, say, a value of about *two inches of water pressure is reached. The

differential 'overcomes the spring 72 and flexes the diaphragm downward, until this movement moves the reversible throw-over device past its critical position, at which moment (represented by Fig. 2) the energy stored in the spring 147 snaps the lever to the extreme position shown in Fig. 3, thereby suddenly opening the valve 130, to

becaught and held open by the detent 136. Gas then passes Vfrom the generator to the outlet chamber 125, with the result that Athe pressure across `the diaphragm is soon equalized, or v; lequalized sufficiently to enable the spring 72 to flex the diaphragm in the reverse direction, which, in terms of the illustrative orientation, is up ward. This movement swings the lever 144 past the critical or dead center position again, so that the lever is thrown by the spring 147 to the other eXtreme position, tripping the detent 136 and permitting the spring 134 to close the valve. This cycle is repeated as long asgas is withdrawn from the generator. the opening and closing of the valve is brief. Itwill be kevident that it is desirable that the spring 134 be strong enough not to yield to the generator pressure acting through the nozzle 129 against the valve, The frequency of the action The time interval between.

of the diaphragm motor will vary with the rate of flow of gas determined by the consumption.

'I'he uctuations in the pressure differential across the diaphragm 127 cause it to ilex up and down, and this action is communicated to a part of the carbide feed valve to agitate the latter and cause the carbide to be fed. The pressure uctuations do not affect the high degree of steadiness and pressure uniformity of the gas delivered by the generator for consumption, since the fluctuations are small in magnitude, and, for all practical purposes, cease to exist in the course of the passage of the gas to the torches.

In the particular generator selected for illustration, the feed element that is agitated is the valve plate 11, to which a link 77 is eccentrically pivoted. This link is connected at '79, 80 with a rod or link 75, which extends inside the gas limb to the bell-crank 70, to the vertical arm of which it is connected.

When the diaphragm 127 is flexed downward, the linkage 70, 75, 77 oscillates the valve plate 11 in one direction. When the diaphragm is flexed upward, the linkage is operated by the spring 72 to oscillate the valve plate in the reverse direction. In general, springs may be replaced by weights.

A feed-valve agitator of the type that has been described, while involving a certain amount of mechanism over liquid-seal devices, can be made easily, at moderate expense, and is not subject to derangement. It has the advantages of being a powerful agitator and of requiring no liquid, and, therefore, no re-lling with liquid from time to time.

A feature of the valve 130 of this dry diaphragm agitator remains to be described. `The sealing element of the valve consists of aV disc 150 of soft rubber or other flexible or yielding material held in a recess of the valve arm 13,1, and this disc is not supported at the region where it seats against the lip of the nozzle 129. For this purpose, an annular cavity 151 is formed in the valve arm 131 underneath the disc. against gas leaks through the valve even when the latter becomes coated with a considerable amount of lime dust.

While a preferred embodiment has been described in detail, it will be understood that numerous changes may be made without departing from the invention.

Iclaim:

1. In a gas generator having a hopper, a generating chamber, a feed device and a gas outlet; an intermittent gas discharge valve interposed between said generating chamber and said outlet, an agitator diaphragm, operating connections between said agitator diaphragm and said feed device, mechanism for opening and closing said gas discharge valve, and means operatively connected with said agitator diaphragm for initiating the operations of said mechanism for opening and closing the gas discharge valve.

2. In a gas generator having a hopper, a generating chamber, a feed device and a gas outlet;

This construction insuresV an intermittent gas discharge valve interposed between said generating chamber and said outlet, an agitator diaphragm, operating connections between said agitator diaphragm and said feed device, and mechanism for actuating said gas discharge valve, said mechanism including a reversible throw-over device controlled by said agitator diaphragm.

3. In a gas generator having a hopper, a generating chamber, a feed device and a gas outlet; an intermittent discharge valve interposed between said generating chamber and said outlet, an agitator diaphragm, operating connections between said agitator diaphragm and said feed device, a spring for closing said valve, an automatic detent for holding the valve open, and a reversible actuating device toppen the valve on one stroke and to release it from said detent on the reverse stroke, the operations of said actuating device being initiated by means of said diaphragm.

4. In a gas generator, having a hopper, a generating chamber, a feed device and a gas outlet; an intermittent discharge valve interposed between said generating chamber and said outlet, `1 an agitator interposed between spaces communicating withthe generating chamber and the outlet, respectively, operating connections between said diaphragm and said feed device, a spring acting on said diaphragm in opposition to the generator pressure, mechanism for opening and closing said valve, and means enabling said diaphragm and spring to initiate the operations of said mechanism.

5. In a gas generator having a hopper, a gen- 1 erating chamber, a feed device and a gas outlet, means for agitating said feed device comprising a nozzle between said generating chamber and said outlet, a valve cooperating with said nozzle, said valve comprising a carrier and a piece of flexible seating material on the carrier, the carrier having a cavity under the seating material at the region where it seats against the nozzle so that the seating material is not supported at this region, an agitator diaphragm, operating 1 connections between said agitator diaphragm and said feed device, mechanism Vfor opening and closing said valve, and means operatively connected with said diaphragm for initiating the operations oi said mechanism. 1

6. In a gas generator having a hopper, a generating chamber,"and a feed device; a gas oiitake pipe, a casing through which the gas passes from the generating chamber to the gas oir-take pipe, a valve for controlling the supply of gas 1 into said casing, an agitator diaphragm exposed on one side to the gas pressure in the casing and on the other side to the gas pressure of the generating chamber, motion-transmitting mechanism between the agitator diaphragm and the l feed device, and means controlled by the agitator diaphragm for intermittently operating the valve to cause pressure variations in the casing.

GEORGE M. DEMING. 1 

